Fantasy Football Week 17 Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em: Bo Nix vs. Jared Goff

Evaluating who to play in fantasy football in week 17 between Detroit Lions QB Jared Goff and Denver Broncos QB Bo Nix.

Dec 14, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) warms up before a game against the Green Bay Packers at Empower Field at Mile High. | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

Two QBs who will be in action on Thursday night and who both threw over 340 passing yards in week 16 are Denver Broncos QB Bo Nix and Detroit Lions QB Jared Goff. Here is a breakdown of who to start and who to sit between the two in week 17 of fantasy football.

Bo Nix 

Dec 14, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) attempts to throw downfield under pressure from Green Bay Packers defensive end Rashan Gary (52) during the fourth quarter at Empower Field at Mile High. | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

In week 16 against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Bo Nix threw the most pass attempts he has all season. He went 28-47 passing for 352 yards and threw both a touchdown and an interception. This resulted in him being slated as QB17 in fantasy football for the week, with the lack of TDs thrown holding him back. Hopefully, he is due for a higher rank in week 17 when he and the rest of the Broncos take on the Kansas City Chiefs.

The Chiefs this season are allowing the 12th fewest passing yards per game. However, they are coming off a game in which they gave up a decent performance in week 16 to rookie Cam Ward of the Tennessee Titans. Against Kansas City, Ward threw for 228 yards and two touchdowns, arguably his best game of the year. This ranked him as QB14 in fantasy for the week. In Kansas City last three games, this is the only game where they have allowed an opposing QB to throw for two or more TDs.

Something else that could not play in favor of Nix having a good game is the availability of backup QB Gardner Minshew. He got hurt last week, and after the season-ending injury to Patrick Mahomes, the third-string QB, Chris Oladokun, is slated to start in week 17. On Sunday against the Titans, Oladakun went 11-16 passing for 111 yards, en route to the Titans' first double-digit victory of the 2025 season, winning against the Chiefs 26-9. With him being the starter, the likelihood of a game script coming to fruition that does not call for a big passing game for Nix is definitely high

Jared Goff 

Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff (16) shakes hands with defensive end Marcus Davenport (92) during warm up at Ford Field in Detroit on Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Against the Pittsburgh Steelers last week, Detroit Lions QB Jared Goff balled out. In the game, he had 364 passing yards and also had three passing TDs. This resulted in him being QB6 in fantasy football in week 16. It also marks the second game in a row that he has thrown three TDs, and his fourth game in his last five where he has thrown two TDs. He will take this high-level play into a week 17 bout against the Minnesota Vikings on Thursday.

The Vikings this season are allowing the third fewest passing yards per game, and in their last three games, they are giving up the second fewest. This low average in their last three is heavily due to them holding teams under 110 passing yards in two of their last three contests. The combined TD-INT ratio in these games between opposing QBs against Minnesota is 0-3.

Final Verdict

When it comes to who should start and who should sit between Goff and Nix in fantasy football in week 17, Nix should start, and Goff should sit. Goff has played at an unbelievable level as of late, but this matchup he has in week 17 is enough to give Nix the start in this debate.